The Wild Life Protection (Kerala Amendment) Bill 2025 seeks to arm the State with powers thus far reserved for the Union government

• Kerala’s decision to amend the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 marks a turning point in the federal discourse on environmental governance. 

Background

•  WPA 1972: The central act was created to curb the decline of wildlife. After the 2022 amendment, it contains four schedules, with Schedule 1 providing the highest protection.
• Section 62: This section empowers the Central Government to declare an animal as vermin if its numbers have increased excessively, or if it is causing significant damage to humans or crops (e.g., wild boars, rats). 
  • Declaring an animal vermin allows citizens to kill it without penalty.
• Kerala’s Problem: The population of wild boars has significantly increased in Kerala, destroying crops, invading human settlements, and causing injuries.
• The Kerala Amendment Bill 2025: The Kerala Government repeatedly requested the Central Government to declare the wild boar as vermin but was ignored. 
  • Arguing that ‘Wild Life’ is on the Concurrent List, Kerala introduced its own legislation.
  • Kerala argues that the state knows the ground realities and needs the decision-making power to act locally.

Main Provisions of the Bill

• Power to Declare Vermin: It attempts to grant the State Government the power to declare animals listed in Schedule 2 of the WPA as vermin in a specific area and for a specific time. 
  • This power currently rests solely with the Centre under Section 62.
• Powers of the Chief Wildlife Warden: It proposes giving the Chief Wildlife Warden the power to kill, tranquilize, capture, or translocate any animal causing grave injury to a human.

Concerns Associated With the Bill

• Centre’s Rationale: The Central Government insists on retaining the power to declare vermin to maintain uniformity across the nation and achieve conservation goals, arguing that animals move between states.
• Legal Supremacy of Central Law on Concurrent Subjects: Although the subject is Concurrent, if state and central laws conflict, the law made by Parliament prevails.
  • Since the Kerala Bill seeks to override the Central Act regarding vermin declaration, it requires the President’s assent to become law.

Conclusion

Regardless of which level of government holds the power, there must be procedural transparency and proper data used as the basis for declaring an animal vermin.

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